Bank of England to send rates to decade-high by this summer February 14, 2022 The Bank of England will raise interest rates to their highest level in over a decade by the summer, City experts are forecasting. Soaring inflation will prompt the Bank to ignore the potential hit to the economic recovery from a sharp reduction in Brits’ spending power and send rates to 1.25 per cent by August, [...]
UK inflation to scale even higher as cost of living squeeze tightens February 14, 2022 Inflation will soar even further above a near three decade high this week as the squeeze on households tightens its grip, City experts are betting. Fresh figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Wednesday will reveal the the cost of living is running at 5.5 per cent, according to the consensus forecast [...]
Golden opportunity: Safe haven asset soars following deepening market turmoil February 14, 2022 Gold has maintained last week's rally, following the escalation of geopolitical tensions between Russia and the West over the future of Ukraine.
Four reasons to be optimistic about energy transition equities February 14, 2022 After achieving remarkable gains in 2020, energy transition equities endured a more turbulent and challenging time in 2021. Shares within the sector struggled to achieve gains as supply chain pressures and higher inflation weakened profits from many companies in the sector and investors were less enthusiastic about the energy transition theme. However, despite the uncertainties [...]
Play by the rules: Making free trade a level playing field February 14, 2022 Two years ago in Greenwich, the Prime Minister spoke eloquently of Britain’s “re-emergence after decades of hibernation as a campaigner for global free trade”. Trade – which he described as “God’s diplomacy” – has done more than any other economic idea to raise global living standards and lift billions out of poverty. If there is [...]
Redcentric looks forward after FCA prosecutes former finance chief for misleading investors February 14, 2022 IT services provider Redcentric has said it hopes to move on following the prosecution of a former top dog for misleading investors. A case led by the financial regulator culminated in the company’s former chief financial officer, Timothy Coleman, being found guilty of four charges relating to the making of false and misleading statements to [...]
Uncertain week ahead: Nervous markets hold their breath as Ukraine-Russia tensions reach boiling point February 14, 2022 Despite Friday’s weakness European markets still managed to finish the week higher, with the FTSE100 finishing higher for the second week in a row. For US markets it was a week of two halves, with a decent first half undermined by two days of sharp losses, which were prompted by an unexpectedly hot January CPI [...]
Stall in tax-free childcare spells danger for closing gender pay gap February 14, 2022 Government spend on Tax-Free Childcare rose by just two per cent to £240.5m in the past year, despite enhanced take-up by parents, and rocketing prices further straining the return to the office. There are fears that the sharp slowdown in government spending in this area could make childcare unaffordable for some parents, especially as the [...]
Labour squeeze and national insurance hike to throttle UK SMEs’ growth plans February 14, 2022 A tight labour squeeze and soaring hiring costs are throttling small and medium-sized British firms’ recovery from the Covid-19 crisis, reveals a fresh survey published yesterday. British businesses are intending on launching a hiring spree this year to boost growth and restore revenues to pre-pandemic levels, but fear a lack of talent could throw their [...]
Exclusive: Energy crunch to squeeze UK industry February 14, 2022 UK manufacturing is set to swallow a £20bn-plus bill from soaring energy costs this year, heaping further pressure on Britain’s weakening economic recovery, reveals exclusive research shared with City A.M. Surging oil and gas prices will pile an extra £8.7bn on to factories’ energy costs in 2022, crimping their already squeezed margins. Swelling energy bills [...]